


let's fall in love for the night (and forget in the morning)

by the_astronomer



Series: bandito-verse oneshots that happen to have song lyric titles [1]
Category: Trench - Twenty One Pilots (Album), Twenty One Pilots
Genre: DEMA (Twenty One Pilots), I haven't written in months, I wonder who, M/M, bandito leader josh, because SOMEONE brainwashed him, bishop tyler because i'm a sucker for that shit, ends up staying for a few months, forbidden romance?? maybe, funky glowing things because why not, i don't even have a google doc for this, i think it's an established relationship, i was supposed to be working on school work, it's 5:30am what the fuck am i doing, its a oneshot don't expect anything else, josh was just there to get inside info, let me have a fantasy based fic smh, maybe get a boyfriend while he's at it, no beta we die like men, opposite sides, running away for a few hours lol, tyler's memories are a lil fucked
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-15
Updated: 2021-01-15
Packaged: 2021-03-16 18:41:59
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,939
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28711431
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/the_astronomer/pseuds/the_astronomer
Summary: "you know we can't leave city borders past curfew.""who said i wanted to go past city borders?"it's the shit-eating grin coupled with the rebellious glint in josh's eyes that said 'let's definitely go leave city borders past curfew and hope we're not caught when we come back.'
Relationships: Josh Dun/Tyler Joseph
Series: bandito-verse oneshots that happen to have song lyric titles [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2114466
Comments: 7
Kudos: 4





	let's fall in love for the night (and forget in the morning)

**Author's Note:**

  * For [anteaterrr](https://archiveofourown.org/users/anteaterrr/gifts).



> i know better than to call you mine.
> 
> -
> 
> i'm sorry if this is ass and seems clunky i haven't properly written for myself in months and this has been sitting in my drafts for 3 days and started to hate it halfway through....... pain. just took words n fuckin ran............ no plot only them
> 
> EDIT JAN. 18 21: decided to fuck it and add the spotify link to any song the fic/fic title is based on because there will probably be a Lot once i get the brain worms in order :] anyways [ here’s the song, let’s fall in love for the night by finneas :]](https://open.spotify.com/track/7kQkmyoHCEqwe7QwDbkSXM)

tyler shifted in his bed, eyes opening just the slightest as he forced himself to sit up. one hand tasked with holding up his weight from the bed while the other pats around on the end table to find the lamp, cramped fingers tugging on the little switch (is it even called that?) and squinting even more as light flooded his little corner of the room. he doesn't know what compelled him to wake up all of a sudden, he has to be up in a few hours from now. some bullshit about preparations on some transitioning power or whatever-the-fuck.

turning, he let his feet touch the cold ground and made his legs hoist him up, carefully clambering to the window and opening up the curtains. the moon is still out and shining through. the stars are taking their sweet time crawling through the sky and the vultures are on standby. tyler was starting to peer down to the city to see if anybody else was joining him in being awake when they weren't supposed to before being promptly startled by a man staring right back at him with a stupid crooked grin. just casually hanging off the building wall with boots promptly glued to a thin ledge. hand over his bare chest, tyler used his free hand to undo the latches of the window and forcing it open, sticking his head out into the cold air.

he forgot how chilly it can be in november, even living in the city. the temperatures in the trench reach the negatives by the time the solstice comes around, so he's heard.

"josh, what the _fuck_."

"good evening to you too, tyler."

josh promptly stuck his hand in tyler's face, looking up at him expectantly before chuckling at his partner's groaning, feeling a soft hand grip his own and tug at his arm. and then a second on his bicep. josh let his feet hit the wall and gave himself a little boost before successfully getting into the bedroom without knocking anything over. tyler promptly closed the window behind him, shuddering at the breeze that came through right before he did. and with that, the younger one gave the older one a glare as he went to find at least something to help cover-up (that wasn't a blanket), settling on a plain button-down. t-shirts? never heard of them.

"what time is it and why are you here."

"it's about 2 in the morning and i want to take you somewhere."

"you know we can't leave city borders past curfew."

"who said i wanted to go past city borders?"

it's the shit-eating grin coupled with the rebellious glint in josh's eyes that said 'let's definitely go leave city borders past curfew and hope we're not caught when we come back.'

tyler could only huff, bringing a hand up to pinch the bridge of his nose and close his eyes to try and have a moment of mental clarity before he follows through with whatever his idiot's planning. it always happens, the last time something like this came up tyler was restricted from his duties and essentially kept on house arrest in his room for 3 months because _'he's going to be a leader soon, he should know better than to act so foolishly.'_ he took a deep breath and brought his hand down, opening his eyes and looking at josh, who took that as an opportunity to continue speaking. "okay! cool, so you know how i'm technically not allowed to be here?"

"in this room or the city, because i damn well know it's both."

"and that i'm undercover for a rebel group in the trench and yada yada, we've had this conversation months ago," said conversation months ago made tyler realize that he's in love with somebody he _definitely_ shouldn't be in love with. "that's on you for willingly harboring me despite the risks. _anyways_! have you ever _left_ the city? that's my first question."

"outside the walls?"

"outside the walls."

"nothing that i can remember."

josh frowned at that response, furrowing his eyebrows. "not even for bishop stuff?"

"they feel like if they take me out too far i'll book it and never return."

"and what makes them think that?" tyler punched his arm at the question. "right, it's me, got it. but! we're going to change that, i wanna take you to the trench," josh held out a finger against tyler's lips when he began to protest. " _for a few hours_ , nothing else. we'll be back before sunrise. or sooner if you have somewhere to go. in and out." annnnd finger removed. "nobody will notice! nico hasn't even noticed me, how bad can this be?"

oh, nico's definitely noticed josh, tyler just has to act stupid whenever he does. no nico, he's never noticed the disturbances in the city and he hasn't seen a single torch, what are you talking about? no nico, he's slept soundly through the night, the moaning was probably from nills having a night terror. no nico, he hasn't heard about the rebel groups outside the city walls conspiring to kidnap a quarter of the city overnight to join them. "you said going outside the walls was your first question. what's the second?"

"do you have anything to bundle up with?"

* * *

the pair walked outside at the city's edge near abandoned buildings, tyler moving quickly to keep blood pumping in his system and shivering in the late fall air. josh? was straight vibing even in the thin button-down he stole months ago when he first arrived. looking up, the rebel stopped in front of one of the buildings before hopping up the steps, looking behind himself and beckoning the protégé to come inside with him. "it's warmer inside than it is out here, i promise."

tyler couldn't even feel his fingers at this point, he was desperate. and so he quickly followed.

he wasn't expecting the heater to be working at this section of the city, letting his shoulders slump and relax as josh closed the door behind themselves, turning on a light and motioning tyler to sit, "but don't get comfy, we're heading back out in not even 5 minutes."

josh came back with a hoodie and a jacket, tossing them to tyler, who looked back at him.

josh only gesticulated (y'know, the hand move-y thing). tyler said nothing as he slipped the hoodie over his head, then the jacket, sticking his hands out and zipping it up.

"do you have any gloves?"

"i mean, you can hold my hand for warmth? i'm gonna have a torch, i'm sure it'll be fine." said hand was held out, josh looking at tyler expectantly before smiling when he heard indistinct muttering and feeling a hand in his own, giving it a squeeze as he turned and rummaged around before pulling out an unlit torch from an unlabeled bucket, dipping it in some liquid and asking tyler to grab some matches.

they were outside the building again and right outside the start of an underground tunnel, josh letting go of tyler momentarily to trade the matches for the torch, striking it up and lighting it up. the match was snuffed under josh's boot and they traded again and their hands were back in each other's. tyler looked over nervously.

"you're 100% sure we'll be back by sunrise?"

"more or less, yeah."

tyler didn't like that answer, josh could only smile.

* * *

by the time they came out the other end the moon was already well on it's way through the sky and tyler's anxiousness was growing with it. doesn't help how high up they were and the thin passage down to the heart of the trench itself. time was limited and josh had no care in the world, apparently.

"i don't know about you but all i see down there is a tiny stream and rocks." tyler murmured, hesitantly peering over the ledge as josh continued to lead them down. "i can feel the cold from here."

"it won't be cold when we actually get down there, don't worry."

"what, is there some hidden, _magical_ part of trench that won't freeze my nips off in the middle of the night?"

tyler's is sarcastic about that.

"yeah, actually."

and josh is serious about that.

"trench is a weird place to be. but the good kind! glowing plants and opposite temperatures, that sort of thing." he glanced over his shoulder, eyes twinkling in the torch light before looking straight again. "hidden alcoves running with some other-worldly magic. nobody knows where it comes from. there's theories that circle around; radiation from the old world, some higher power blessing only a select few in subtle ways, ya know."

"no, i don't."

"well now you do."

all tyler can mutter is a huffy ' _smartass_ ' as the ground grew closer and closer until his flats were one with the rocky ground, letting josh lead him to wherever he wanted to go. they were already here, what did it matter? water splashed against his shoes and soaked through, causing the younger one to grimace. why josh didn't give him his own pair of boots, he doesn't know. josh is saying stuff about the trench again but he's not even paying attention. tyler knows it's rude, and frankly he doesn't care right now. doesn't care to the point where he doesn't realize his surroundings have changed and led to josh tugging his arm to make sure he didn't walk straight into a lake. in a cave. cave lake!

it's pretty small, but it's not quite a pond, too big to be a pond. lake pond? pond lake?

tyler turned to look at josh, about to thank him when his brain properly registered where they were. one of those warm magical places josh was talking about. the type of stuff straight out of a children's fantasy book; fresh green grass and moss covering the floor, shimmering vines climbing up walls to a height tyler's brain can't even process, towering (and glowing! important detail for your brain :) ) flowers acting almost as trees, fireflies.. a lot of fireflies. or maybe they're just stagnant balls of light, they're essentially the same thing.

josh was right about it being warm, too. tyler's almost starting to break a sweat. "..thanks."

"do you see what i mean now?" josh laughed as he carefully pulled tyler away from the water, letting go of his arm to slip out of his own hoodie, tying it around his waist. tyler awkwardly copied, nodding and let out a breathy chuckle.

the pair didn't do much else really, josh showing tyler around the cave before they settled to a little corner near the back, a mini hideaway within a hideaway. could be a good napping spot, fits two people easily. tyler clambered on top of josh and let their bodies mold into each other, letting his head kinda just slump onto josh's chest, eyes already closed. he's still tired, believe it or not. being woken up at 2 in the morning and walking for almost an hour immediately after does that.

josh doesn't mind, tracing shapes into tyler's back on his shirt. the dumb thin dema button down one.

"ty?"

"hmn."

part of tyler's shirt ended up between josh's thumb and index fingers, who was rubbing the fabric almost anxiously. nervous and hesitant. it's not even that nice of a material, scratchy feeling. josh feels uncomfortable when he wears the shirts, in the rare times he does. he doesn't know how tyler can wear them on the daily and seem so unfazed. and josh _also_ doesn't know how to get words out, all of a sudden.

"what is it, hun," tyler murmured into josh's chest, lifting his face just the slightest to try and get his tired eyes to meet josh's. "can't leave me hangin'"

" _haveyoueverthoughtofrunningawayfromdema_ "

"can't understand ya when you speak fast like that, josh."

tyler damn well understood what josh said.

josh cursed under his breath before taking a deep one, squeezing the fabric between his fingers as he almost forced the words to leave his lips.

"have you ever.. thought of-.. of running away from dema. that's what i said." he doesn't even know why he's so nervous asking. he feels like he should but he knows tyler wouldn't snap at him for asking something like that. they've been together for months, he knows tyler's had certain thoughts about certain things, he's witnessed how the elder bishops have treated him. feeling his boy shift, josh looked up from the ground to watch tyler go back into his nestling position, face buried in his chest and arms loosely hooked around his torso. "i just thought, y'know, the bishops don't let you do anything- ..and you're supposed to _lead_ them when you turn 21 next month, and-"

"do i appear _that_ bored around them?" tyler hummed, voiced muffled.

"you've looked the most alive on the walk here; the most alive i've seen you in months, if i had to be honest."

josh doesn't like the silence that followed, almost flinching when tyler sighed, shifting his head so he can look at josh a little more comfortably. resting on his chin for too long makes his jaw hurt. "..i have, a little bit. the thinking-about-running-away thing," he started. "from what i know and what my records show, i was born in the walls, that's a given. grew up and went through the same education as everybody else. i don't really remember many details of my life after i graduated grade school, when nico took me under his wing. said he saw a lot of himself in me."

it was tyler's turn to take the fabric of josh's shirt into his own fingers, pursing his lips into a thin line. "..now that i'm talking about it, i don't think i remember my parents' faces, let alone names. i was told i have siblings but i haven't seen them around in recent memory, either. ..i think the _longing_ of wanting to be somewhere that wasn't dema started just a few weeks before you suddenly showed up."

tyler chuckled at the realization, eyes flicking towards josh. "..maybe that's why i was so drawn to you."

"i get you're trying to be romantic but the fact you can't remember your family or most of your life in general is freaking me the fuck out." josh breathed, letting go on his hold on tyler's shirt and just rubbing his hand against his back in slow circles. "can you even remember what your parents looked like?"

tyler was about to say something like ' _of course i do, dumbass, who doesn't remember what their parents look like_?' before stopping, eyebrows knitting together in frustration. you can _see_ him buffer like a 1998 windows nt 4.0 desktop in a school library that hasn't gotten proper funding in 20 years. he can't remember. is it because he doesn't want to? why can't he remember?

"..why'd you ask if i ever thought about running away?" he's so desperate to change the subject.  
  
  


"oh! uh-.. i was gonna ask if you did if you just-.. if you just wanted to come to the camp with me, if you wanted. to leave dema and never look back, that sorta thing. to be a bandito, basically. ..i mean, you already have the outfit, you're just missing the tape."

"i think i would be putting you in more danger than me being in dema would if i took you up on that offer."

because the head-bishop-protégé-meant-to-succeed-nico disappearing would cause hysteria and a countrywide search party. a search party that could land them right at the bandito camp entrance.

"but i would've if it didn't mean that."

* * *

"the offer still stands, y'know."

they were back in tyler's room right before sunrise, just like josh promised. he was on his way out through the window, kind of just.. sittin' on the ledge. "whenever you wanna go, i'll take you."

tyler could only nod, stepping closer at josh's request. leaning into his touch as they exchanged just a quick little kiss or two before forcing themselves to pull away.

"do you guys have a secret code or whatever for danger reasons?"

"i mean, at the camp and in trench in general we say 'sahlo folina' when we're in need." josh hummed, meeting tyler's eyes and softening once again. he's gonna be a small little puddle by the time he's done getting all soft and melty for his boy. "so use that, if y'want. doubt the bishops know what it is, _i_ barely know what it is."

"so if i tell you sahlo folina you'll immediately whisk me away and book it to trench and hope for the best?"

"yea, basically."

his eyes twinkled at tyler's soft laughter, unable to hide his own smile as he glanced towards the city and watching just the softest bits of sunlight leak into the streets.

"i really gotta go, ty. i'll see you later, alright?"

"yeah, yeah, i know." tyler's already gently shooing josh out, rolling his eyes at the pouting, chuckling. "love you, don't break anything."

"i love you too."

the windows are latched closed and tyler was left alone again, watching josh descend down the wall with immense hesitance before safely making it to the ground, watching him run off.

the jacket and the hoodie were safely tucked away under the bed, tyler pretending he was getting ready when he heard the door open, looking over to see red robes and a threatening aura. tyler sure does hope he heard none of that.

"good morning, nico."

"tyler."

**Author's Note:**

> anthony if ur reading this i'm gifting this to you out of spite this is for the FOUR joshler fics just sitting in my gifts....... u say is for me.... fuck you this for you now ❤️  
> fun fact i have like 7 missing assignments in english rn rob if u really think i'm gonna read the great gatsby u could Not be any more wrong  
> 


End file.
